Internal-combustion engine.



J. E. SOULES.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5. 'I9I5.

I Patented May16, 1916.

a SHEETS-SHEET I.

J. E. SOULES.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. APPLICATION FILED MAY5. I915.

1,1 83,777. Patented May 16, 1911s.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

J. E. SOULES. INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

- APPLICATION FILED MAY 5, I9I5-- Patented May 16, 1916.

3 SHEET$SHEET 3.

flak/2%) $727ZZQ52ZZ66 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E.

SOULES, or LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOB. on rosary-NINE ONE- nUNnnnnTHs-ro n. r. HORGAN,

OF Los ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

To all whom it may concern Be i known thatI, JOHN E. SoULEs, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angelesfin the county of Los Angeles, State tion engines and the principal object of the invention isto provide an engine in which the torque on the'driving shaft will be more uniform than in thestandard engines now on the market.

In my invention I utilize the four stroke cycle, the first stroke drawing in a charge of explosive mixture, the second stroke compressing this mixture, the third stroke uti-' lizing the force of the explosion, and the fourth stroke ejecting the burnt gases. There is thus only one explosion or working stroke to, four strokes of the piston and i where ordinary cranks and-connection rods are used only one working stroke for each cylinder to two revolutions ofwthe crank shaft. where several cylinders are used there are 'half as many working strokes per revolution of the crank shaft as there are pistons. For

example, the eight cylinder engine now being applied to several standard ymotor 3 cars giveslfour active strokes or impulses per revolution of the engine shaft. *Irtmy engine the eight cylinders give eiglitimpulses per revolution of the engine shaft.

A further object of the invention-isto providea single opening. in each cylinder throughwhich the m xture enters and through which the burnt gases are expelled and: to provide in comb nation with this openinga valve secured directly to the engine shaft thus: doing away with the timing gears commonly supplied with internalcombustion engine valvefgears.

Afurtherobject of my invention is to arr range the cylinders at equal distances from. the engine shaft and to locate the exhaust and mixture manifolds centrally about the 'engine'shaft. so-that a very direct path is provided from thecarbureter to each cylinder thus doing away with the difliculty, found in many multiple cylinder engines,

' of getting a uniformly rich mixture in' each cylinder. p A further objectof my invention 1s to arrange the cylinders in two pairs with the In standard designs of engines Specification of Letters Patent. Pat t d M 16 1916 Application filed May'5, 1915. Serial No. 26,170.

ing undue friction.

a balancing the working parts and prevent- Further objects and advantages will api pear, hereinafter or will be evident to one skilled in the art afteran examination of following specification.

the annexed drawings and a perusal of the :In the drawings which illustrate one form of my invention: Figure 1 is a View of the shown in section to better illustrate the inassembled engine, a portion thereof being ternal structure. Fig. 2'is a section on the plane a2 w of Fig. 1 looking'in-the direction 'ofvthej arrows. Fig. 3 is an end View. F ig. 4 is a section onlthe plane 'm 'm* of,

Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows. Fig.5 isa perspective .view of alipositive rotation valve. Fig. 6; is a perspectiveview of a negative rotation valve. Fig.- 7 isa '9 is a developed view'ofthe cam member; In the. form of my. invention illustrated by .these. drawings a crank case shell 11. is

view of the-mixture manifold showing the.

inlet ports. Fig. 8 is 'aviewof the exhaust manifold showing the exhaust. ports. Fig.

formed in two halves secured together by Rigidly secured to the shaft 17 is the four lobed cam 18 in which is formed the cam groove 19." Fourcylinder castings 20 are secured .by bolts 21 to the plate 13 and four similar cylinder-castings22 are secured by bolts 23. to the plate 14. Each of'the cylinder castings 20 and 22 are provided witha water space 24 throu h which cooling 27. slides freely in the bore 28 of each cylinder casting, the pistons each being clamped by-nuts' 29 on the threaded end .30, of a piston rod 31 so that the amountof'compresbolts 12 about, upper and' lower "bearing .90 16 being provided to take any endthrustof a shaft 17 turning in the bearings15.

water may be circulated. y any convenient sion can-be regulated by adjusting the piston on the piston rod. Each of the piston rods 31 passes through a boss 32 formed on one of the plates 13 or 14, packing 33 surrounding the piston rod and being clamped firmly therearound by\ a gland 34 threaded on the boss 32. A crosshead 35 is formed on the lower endof each piston rod, each cross head 35 carrying a roller pin 36 on which a roller 37 is mounted. The ends of the cross heads 35 are so shaped that they engage and are guided by cross head guides 38 these guides having threaded ends 39 passing through holes in the plates 13 and 14 and secured therein by nuts 40, these nuts being located in the openings 25 of the cylinder castings. The cross head guides 38 secure the plates 13 and 14 in their proper relative positions. The rollers 37 fit into the cam groove 19 of the cam 18, the cylinders 20 and 22 being staggered on either end so that the rollers 37 assume the positions cured thereon can find their'own seat inthe openings 51.

side a valve ring 46 between an intake manifold 47 and an exhaust manifold 48, the manifolds 47 and 48 being secured to the ring 46 by screws 49. The valve ring 46 is secured by bolts 50 to the cylinder castings f 20 and 22, openings 51*being formed in the ring 46 registering with openings 52 com-, municating with the extreme outer end of the interior of the cylinder castings 20 and 22 and serving both as an intake and an ex-.'

haust opening. y

The intake manifold 47 and the exhaust manifold 48 'are'each provided with ports 53 having the same radialcentralf plane as The valve members 45 at either end of the engine each have an intake port 54 formed on one side thereof and an exhaust port 55 formed on the other side, the ports 54 and 55 being 90 apart in" each valve and theftwo valves being so located that the port 54 on one end of the engine is 90 ahead of the. port 54 on the other end of the engine. Spark plugs 56 are connected to suitable ignition means driven from the sprocket 42.

The method of operationgof' the inven tion is as followspThe shaft 17 being rotated by external-means thecam 18 is turned and the rollers 37 .inthe cam groove '19 are forced up or down by theslope-of the groove.

19 as shown in Fig. 9. The rollers 37 being constrained to move alongfthe axis of the piston rods 31 by the cross heads 35 and the guides 38 the pistons 26 are moved up or down in the cylinders. As the pistons 26 move downward on the intake stroke the intake ports 54 connect the openings 51 to ports 53 in the intake manifold'47 .which is fed with explosive mixture through a pipe 100. The opening 51 isclosed by the rotation of-the valve 45 just as the piston 26 completes the intake stroke, the opening 51 remaining closed during the upward compression stroke and the downward firing stroke. The opening 51' is then put into communication with a port 53 of the exhaust manifold 48 through the exhaust port 55 of the valve 45 which turns into the proper position to do this at the'beginning of the scavenging stroke remaining open until all the burnt gases are expelled, the port 54 then swinging into position so that the cycle is repeated. The charge is fired at the beginning of the firing stroke by a spark plug 56. In practical operation the various cylinders are fired alternately at either end in the I order that their rollers lie in the cam groove 19 so that the piston on one end has not completed its firing stroke before its adjacent piston on the other end receives an impulse. There is therefore a partially balanced pressure on the cam 18. As each piston makes four strokes for each revolution of the shaft 17 each piston gives an impulse once per revolution of the shaft 17. The case 11 is partially filled with oil and ball bearings, not shown, may be provided at various friction points according to standard automobile practice.

I claim as'my invention:

1. In an internal combustion engine a plurality of parallel cylinders each having an opening formed in the walls thereof, a shaft parallel to said cylinders, pistons in said cylinders, means by which said pistons drive said shaft, a valve ring secured to drical disk rotary valve secured to said shaft, fitting closely inthe bore of said valve ring between said intake manifold and said exhaust manifold, and having an intake port and an exhaust port formed therein on either side thereof.

2. In aninternal combustion enginea supporting structure, an engine shaft turning in bearings in said structure, a cam member secured to said engine shaft and having a cam groove cut therein, aseries of engine 13c cylinders on one side of said cam member, a'

oteylinders on the other side of said cam 10 member'so'that the rollers can engage the cam groove at equal distances about the. pe-

riphery of the cam member.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 15 30th day of April, 1915.

J OHN E. SOULES. 

